I'm somewhat intrigued by the idea that someone, somewhere, in 1930 decided to do a film about the Alaskan salmon industry. Not quite the seafaring 'Western' that 1938's "Spawn of the North" was, this film is notable for an early look at Joel McCrea and Jean Arthur, although by this time Arthur had nearly a forty film resume dating back to the silent film era. Actually, Arthur's character here is somewhat of a spoiler for most of the picture's duration, as hero Boyd Emerson (McCrea) finally winds up with the hooker with a heart of gold, Cherry Malotte (Evelyn Brent).
Though the story is somewhat formulaic, even as early as 1930, what I found to be THE most interesting aspect of the film were the sequences devoted to the actual harvesting of wild salmon. There was a scene where the fish were so thick you could literally walk across the water on their backs if one had cause to. The shipboard detail of the harvesting, preparation and canning operation was a fascinating look at how mechanized the whole process was eighty years ago. To top it off, the Icy Point brand of canned salmon is still available to this day!
There's some comic relief provided by Emerson's partners Fraser (Ray Hatton) and Balt (Louis Wolheim). Balt was an interesting character, having been a loyal aid to Cherry Malotte. Every time he came on screen I couldn't help thinking Lon Chaney Sr. as Quasimodo, but without the hunchback and makeup job.
As for the story, the one thing I couldn't quite understand was how Emerson wound up with two hundred thousand dollars worth of financing for a fishery operation without the hint of collateral. Sure, Miss Malotte put in a good word for him, but somehow I didn't get the idea that that would be enough. There was some other back and forth intrigue involving the Whalen's, the father (Purnell Pratt) first blocking the deal, but eventually relenting on behalf of his daughter Mildred (Jean Arthur).
In perhaps an odd coincidence of character identification, Emerson's main antagonist in the story turned out to be an established businessman named Frederick Marsh. For all intents and purposes, he was the cad who rivaled Emerson for the hand of Miss Mildred. In one of those perhaps unintended glimpses into his true nature, the symbol above one of his own fishery buildings had the sign 'MF' above it. That of course, could have stood for something else altogether.
Though the story is somewhat formulaic, even as early as 1930, what I found to be THE most interesting aspect of the film were the sequences devoted to the actual harvesting of wild salmon. There was a scene where the fish were so thick you could literally walk across the water on their backs if one had cause to. The shipboard detail of the harvesting, preparation and canning operation was a fascinating look at how mechanized the whole process was eighty years ago. To top it off, the Icy Point brand of canned salmon is still available to this day!
There's some comic relief provided by Emerson's partners Fraser (Ray Hatton) and Balt (Louis Wolheim). Balt was an interesting character, having been a loyal aid to Cherry Malotte. Every time he came on screen I couldn't help thinking Lon Chaney Sr. as Quasimodo, but without the hunchback and makeup job.
As for the story, the one thing I couldn't quite understand was how Emerson wound up with two hundred thousand dollars worth of financing for a fishery operation without the hint of collateral. Sure, Miss Malotte put in a good word for him, but somehow I didn't get the idea that that would be enough. There was some other back and forth intrigue involving the Whalen's, the father (Purnell Pratt) first blocking the deal, but eventually relenting on behalf of his daughter Mildred (Jean Arthur).
In perhaps an odd coincidence of character identification, Emerson's main antagonist in the story turned out to be an established businessman named Frederick Marsh. For all intents and purposes, he was the cad who rivaled Emerson for the hand of Miss Mildred. In one of those perhaps unintended glimpses into his true nature, the symbol above one of his own fishery buildings had the sign 'MF' above it. That of course, could have stood for something else altogether.